need some advice... i recently noticed that i have quite a few bristle worms in my tank, they like to congregate around the base of my LR , some are long and skinny and some are short and fat.

during one of our infamous eskom load sheds, i shone a light around to see whats happening and i noticed this colony in a hollow under my rocks.

the image is only one colony, they range from about 1cm lengthX3mm width to i dont really know,cause they're always bunched up. but these are the fatties.

then along my other rock, i get the skinny ones, generally long and thin like 2mm width, if even. didnt take a pic of those as they move around the base of the LR a lot. i'll take some pics tonight of the other colonies.

so, i know some bristleworms are good to have, but is there such a thing as too many? and if so, how could i remove some?

to be honest, the skinnies are the ones that move around in/on the sand, but the fatties are the ones that stay under the rock.

what do i do?

Kr

B

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if you do a bit of research on the topic you'll find there is a lot of opposing views on these little guys, many guys with clams have said that their clams have been attacked by bristle worms, many have said that bristle worms stay away from their clams and only unhealthy livestock fall prey to these very opportunistic cuc.

In my opinion, if they get larger than 5cm sump them, make sure they have sufficient food to munch on and they will leave your livestock alone.

They are nocturnal and you'll only really see them at night, watch them and remove the big ones to sump.

Their numbers will automatically be regulated by the waste in your system. More waste, more worms. For me, they are very important part of the clean up crew. The normal pinkish bristle worms are all OK. And the big ones will be out competed for food by multiple small ones. That's what I found on my system.

They will go for anything that is dead. And if you find them in your half dead clam, its because they are vultures and they are already assisting you in removing dead and decaying matter. There is another reason the clam died, not due to the worms.